chapter three: understanding
by NimbusQuill
Summary: The third installment of my Dramione series :


Hey guys! Thanks for sticking with me for so long. School's started and I swear it's trying to kill me. So I promise to keep up with my writing!

PotterrLustt8327 I PROMISE you I am not abandoning this story! This thing is like my baby now Thank you for sharing your love for it, I'm really happy you're enjoying it

All the characters belong solely to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing.

I honestly don't know how long Malfoy and I stood there. All I know is that I felt completely comfortable. Me, comfortable in the arms of a future Death Eater. Everything was moving way to fast, and I knew that there was no way that things could continue like this without seriously damaging other relationships. Draco's fate was to join Voldemort's army, which everyone knew. He had only been bragging about it to his little cronies since fourth year. All of this raced through my head, but still I stood there.

_Come on Hermione! This is not going to happen. It's probably just a joke that Draco and his friends came up with one night to mess with Harry. This is not real! _

As I stepped away from Draco, I could feel him slipping back into the "real world."

"I have to go." I said as quickly as I could, knowing all too well that what had just happened was going to make my life a lot more difficult.

"What? Hermione, where are you going? Did I do something?" Draco asked while I grabbed all my stuff and headed the other direction. I wasn't entirely sure where I was going to go that he couldn't follow, but I knew that if I kept walking, I'd find a place. "Please, don't go. Please."

The last please was almost enough to make me stop in my tracks. Almost. But my feet just kept moving in the opposite direction.

For the next week, whenever I saw Malfoy, I would either look down or turn in the other direction. I know it was childish, but I couldn't look him in the eye. I couldn't see him look up at me expectantly when there was nothing I couldn't give him what he wanted. I couldn't be with him, and seeing him slowly start to smile whenever our eyes accidently met nearly killed me. I would stay away from him. It's what I have to do. No contact, just space.

"Hermione!" called the one person I can never talk to. "Hermione! Please, just wait up!"

"Draco, I have to get to Ancient Runes! I can't talk right now!"

"Ancient Runes? Really you're going to use that one again? That was your excuse on Tuesday. Plus, I happen to know that you don't have Ancient Runes for another 40 minutes. Now, stop walking so fast and just give me a second." He just looked so honest and hopeful that it was hard to not stop and give him a chance. But I couldn't do that.

"Look Draco, you need to stop. You need to stop finding out my schedule, you need to stop purposefully walking down the same corridor as me and you need to stop asking for me to talk to you because you know that I can't. I'm sorry if you don't like hearing that, but it's the truth. Now, let me go to my class and just walk away." I quickly grabbed ahold of my bag again and started toward the corridor. But he stopped me again. Draco was holding my wrist, and from the amount of pressure he was placing on it, he didn't seem to have the intention of letting go.

"Draco. Let go of me. Now."

"I can't do that Hermione. I need you to understand that I'm not joking. I can't just let you walk away and not talk to you again because it's killing me. Do you think I like sitting in the common room at three in the morning wondering if you're asleep or if you're sitting with Weasley talking about some idiotic topic he seems to find interesting. I hate this. I hate that I want to punch Potter whenever he has his arm around your waist. But you want to know that hurts more than any of those? The way you're looking at me as if you don't believe a single word I'm saying."

"Malfoy, I can't do this right now. I can't do this at all. I'm sorry." Next thing, Draco was pushing me against the wall and pushing his lips to mine in the most sensual, yet soft kiss ever.


End file.
